Fazul Mohamed's sword now targets AfriCOG

Tuesday August 15 2017

In Summary

The board’s moves have touched off a storm and earned it serious lashing on social media, with several critics suggesting that it is frustrating NGOs purported to have reproached the government before, during and after recently concluded General Election.

Just before the August 8 polls, AfriCOG Executive Director Gladwell Otieno had asked the courts to compel the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission to open up the voters register for public scrutiny.

On Aug 12, KHRC Chairman Makau Mutua, who is also among the founders of the rights watchdog, tweeted that he would never recognise the re-election of President Kenyatta.

The board, in a letter to Director of Criminal Investigations Ndegwa Muhoro, alleges AfriCOG has been operating illegally because it “is not registered under the NGOs Coordination Act 1990 as required by law”.

LAW

“AfriCOG is and continues to operate as a charitable organisation in direct contravention of Section 22 (of NGOs Co-ordination Act 1990 )which according to the Act is an offence punishable by law,” NGO Coordination Board Executive Director Fazul Mohamed says in the letter.

He also quotes Regulation 75 of the Act and the attendant regulation, which requires all organisations engaging in charitable activities to rescind their various registrations and obtain registration.

“The purpose of this communication therefore is to urge your office to move with speed to close down the operations of this organisation and further arrest the directors and members of AfriCOG, for contravening the foregoing provision; and with a view to arraigning and prosecuting them in a competent court of law,” Mr Mohamed says.

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Mr Mohamed further instructs all the directors of AfriCOG to cease all operations with immediate effect until the organisation acquires a certificate of registration.

POLL LINK

And just like he did with the Kenya Human Rights Commission case, Mr Mohamed asks the Central Bank of Kenya to freeze all bank accounts belonging to AfriCOG.

The board’s moves have touched off a storm and earned it serious lashing on social media, with several critics suggesting that it is frustrating NGOs purported to have reproached the government before, during and after recently concluded General Election.

Just before the August 8 polls, AfriCOG Executive Director Gladwell Otieno had asked the courts to compel the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission to open up the voters register for public scrutiny.

On Aug 12, KHRC Chairman Makau Mutua, who is also among the founders of the rights watchdog, tweeted that he would never recognise the re-election of President Kenyatta.

He said, “The sins of 2013 have been compounded. That’s why as a matter of my conscience I can't - and won't - recognise Uhuru Kenyatta as president”.

COURT

After the notice of deregistration of the commission, Prof Mutua said Mr Mohamed had no legal authority to deregister KHRC as the “High Court last year rejected these false charges and ordered him to cease and desist”.